The Swedish Royal Court has announced an incoming state visit from Finland.
Upon the invitation from King Carl XVI Gustaf, Finnish President Sauli Niinistö and First Lady Jenni Haukio will be in Stockholm on 17 and 18 May 2022.
The invitation comes as declarations from authorities of both countries that Sweden and Finland are beginning to consider joining NATO.
The transatlantic defence pact has been at the centre of the public debate recently. It was one of the early excuses Russia gave as a reason for invading Ukraine; the country wanted to join NATO, a move that made the Russian government very nervous.
Neither Sweden nor Finland are part of NATO at the moment, although they maintain a special relation through the Partnership for Peace program, which allows both countries to take part in annual NATO exercises for strengthening defences.
Naturally, with both countries being also part of the Scandinavian peninsula, the state visit will also be focused on the economic and cultural ties shared by the two nations.
Further details on the state visit will be released in due course.
Now that Ukraine has been invaded and heavily bombed, many of the surrounding countries are feeling more vulnerable than they used to and, ironically, are looking at NATO as the only possible solution for a security guarantee.
Under Article 5 of the NATO constitutional chart, an attack on one member country is an attack on all member countries of NATO.
In particular, Finland would be in a vulnerable position, as the country shares a 600-mile (or 1300-kilometre) border with Russia, making it an easy target for a land invasion. Many Russians have already utilised that border to flee their country due to fears of their government.
